She Flies With Her Own Wings
by enchanted-blues
Summary: Stella Cho was a dreamer and, for as long as she could remember, all she ever dreamed about were superheroes. And when she's miraculously given the chance to become a hero herself, she jumps on the opportunity. However, it wasn't quite what she had in mind, especially when she joins the team. [Season 1]
1. Chapter One

_Disclaimer: I don't own Young Justice or anything DC-related_.

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**Chapter One**

How had she gotten herself into this mess?

To be honest, it had seemed so simple in the beginning. As the middle child, it was Stella Cho's duty to take care of her younger brother and protect him. That's how she rolled, always have and always will. He wasn't the strongest kid, but then again, he was only nine years old. Still, he was smaller than most his age. That made the poor boy an easier target for a lot of bullies.

This particular bully was one of the biggest and meanest ten year olds in fifth grade that always picked on the poor boy when the chance arose. And this time? The prick demanded her innocent little brother to 'get out of my swing, loser' and had pushed him off roughly. Being the older sister and unable to control her sudden anger, she had charged at the guy and pushed him roughly. And now here they were. She wasn't sure if it was good or bad that they were at a playground and not at school.

"No one treats my brother that way!" Stella yelled angrily while stepping protectively in front of her brother.

The bully sputtered in surprise before regaining his balance and stared at the older girl incredulously for a moment. However, that was shortly lived when the few kids that came to the spectacle started giggling at him. Not liking the fact that he was being laughed at, he glared at her and sneered meanly.

"Hiding behind your big sister, crybaby?" The sneer made the corner of her lips twist down in disgust. Ugh, the guy was a total prick and he was totally gross too.

"The only crybaby I see is you." She shot back while crossing her arms. "Especially when I'm done with you, kid."

"Oooooooh!" The kids that gathered chimed and giggled again. That only served to push the bully's anger and embarrassment even further.

The bully lifted his fist up and shouted at her in rage, "You're going down!"

Taking up the defensive stance she learned during her taekwondo class, she frowned and prepared herself for his fist. She would be lying if she said her heart wasn't squeezing in fear. She'd never used taekwondo outside of her lesson because her instructors always told her that it's never used to fight people. Martial arts should be used to defend yourself and that was her first lesson when she took up taekwondo all those years ago. However, not once had she needed to use it to defend herself. Well, until today, that is.

The punch came fast, but she managed to block it with a middle block and swipe his fist to the side. It surprised her, but it made her heart swell proudly at how well she had blocked that first attack. The second punch was weaker than the first due to him using the opposite arm, but she blocked it again. She couldn't believe it! Her taekwondo is really paying off right now!

Before he could throw another punch, she countered by shoving his chest really hard with both her hands when she saw the opportunity. Her counter had him back on his butt, looking just as stunned as the other kids.

"If you pick on my brother again, I swear it'll be worse next time." She threatened with a harsh glare.

The bully looked absolutely flustered as he scrambled up and took off quickly. The other kids laughed after him until he disappeared out of sight before they all dispersed as well. Shaking her head, she turned to help her little brother up and dusted off his pants.

"Thanks, _noona_." Aiden mumbled softly as he swiped his forearm across his eyes to wipe his teary eyes. She couldn't help the smile that spread across her lips as she ruffled his hair gently.

"Isn't that what big sisters are for? I'll always be here for you." She lifted an arm and flexed it, trying to show him the muscles - not that she had any - to him. "I'm almost like a superhero, huh?"

Finally, a smile bloomed on Aiden's face and he nodded. Together, the both of them walked back home before it turned dark and their parents started getting worried. Even though they were in the richer part of Gotham City, that didn't mean it was necessarily safer after dark and her parents hated them being out too late.

By the time they arrived home, their mother was in the midst of cooking dinner and their eldest sister was doing homework at the kitchen table. The delicious smell of Korean food filled her nose and her stomach grumbled loudly.

"Aiden, you got your pants all dirty." Their mother said with a slight frown as she put the diced vegetables into the pot of boiling broth. Aiden cast his eyes down sheepishly, telling her that he had fallen before he dashed upstairs to get changed.

Teresa, her eldest sister, looked up from her homework and gave her a look to silently convey that she didn't believe what Aiden had said. Stella just shook her head and shrugged, silently telling her sister to drop the matter. Thankfully, her sister was smart enough to catch on to that and only rolled her eyes before going back to work on her homework.

Dinner was pretty uneventful. Their dad came back home from work and they ate Korean hotpot – one of her favourites – for dinner. After dinner, she packed for taekwondo and her dad drove her all the way to class. Taekwondo class was pretty uneventful too. Like usual there was stretching, running a few laps around the room, and then they were practicing their forms and moves. They were reviewing and practicing the old moves because there was going to be a belt test soon.

With a surprised yelp, Stella Cho got knocked off her feet and landed on her butt before she could register what had happened. Blinking a few times, she looked up at her instructor and smiled sheepishly.

"Stella, you're getting distracted again." Her taekwondo instructor scolded with a disapproving frown. '_Again_'. It definitely hadn't been the first time she had daydreamed during her class and her instructor knew it. At this point, he didn't reprimand her too harshly because he knew no matter how many times he told her, she would end up daydreaming again at some point. Plus, could anyone really blame her for drifting off? She'd been practicing and reviewing the same things over and over.

"I'm sorry." She smiled and got right back up, quickly straightening out her uniform.

He sighed and smiled at her too, knowing that the girl was good at heart. She also happened to be one of his best students. The girl was innocent and naïve, but she worked hard during class even if she did daydream from time to time.

"Pay attention closely next time." He gave her one last look, though a bit half-hearted, before jogging to the front of the room. A couple minutes later the class ended and she was walking to the back to grab her jacket.

There was a pat on her shoulder and her friend, Christina, popped up from behind her with her contagious smile. "You were daydreaming again, weren't you?"

"I was just thinking."

"You're always thinking. What was it about this time?"

"Batman." Stella replied while slipping her coat on. "Well, superheroes to be exact. Wouldn't it be so cool to be one of them?"

There was something about superheroes that had always intrigued Stella Cho. She couldn't remember when she had become so interested in superheroes. Maybe it was when she saw Batman for the first time in her life on television, or when she saw the Justice League on the news saving the world. Nevertheless, it had been memorable and she dreamed to be someone that could help people.

Christina rolled her eyes playfully and nudged Stella with her shoulder. "That's why it's called a daydream. We're just kids. Plus, that stuff should be left for Batman and Superman."

It wasn't the first time Stella had heard this from people, and she knew that it wouldn't be the last. 'You're just a kid', 'That's not a real dream', 'Those are silly thoughts', and so much more. At first it had discouraged her. What was wrong with dreaming? But now she knew not to take it so hard.

"Hey, you never know. I could probably beat bad guys up with my martial arts skills." Stella punched the air in front of her to emphasis her point and laughed loudly. Well, she had today when she practically beat her brother's bully up.

"Yeah right!" Her friend laughed too and slowly brought her arm downwards in a slow, playful attack. Stella immediately lifted her arm up in a high block and grinned cheekily. That was shortly lived though when she saw her family's car waiting for her, and she bid her friend goodbye before scurrying to the car.

She greeted her mom cheerfully as soon as she closed the car door and proceeded to tell her mom about tonight's class during the whole ride home. The rest of the night passed without incident. There was some homework and television watching with her family, then just before bedtime she read her newest book on the Justice League.

That night, like every other night, she dreamt of her favourite superheroes.

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Hello!

This is my first time posting a story on this site. It's actually been awhile since I've written a fanfic actually so I apologize in advance if it's not up to par.

I've had this idea floating around for quite some time before I got managed to write. I was inspired to post it up. I know a lot of people aren't too fond of them, but I'll try my best to make it good. In the meantime, I think it's safe to say this is an AU story.

I hope you enjoyed this first (introduction) chapter!

~Mari


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

Seriously, how the heck was she always getting into these messes?

First, it was helping her brother from a bully. And now, she dove head first into a situation that was worse than a measly ten year old bully.

"Move, bitch! Or I'll kill you!"

Yeah, far, far worse.

Stella felt incredibly stupid right now. The moment the terrified scream had ripped through the evening air, she had run towards the sound without a second thought. A part of her had not been prepared to see a man gripping a woman's hair with his fist raised, hidden inside one of the darkening alleyways. Again, without another thought, she had thrown her backpack at the man's back, giving the woman enough time to escape his grip and scurry to her. And now here she was, between the two of them.

"N-no!" Stella yelled out, even though her body was trembling in fear. Her sense of justice, no matter how idiotic it was, took over and grounded her feet. Her daydreams of being a superhero was coming true much faster than she had anticipated. She couldn't run now…no, she _wouldn't_ run. She could feel the woman hiding behind her shaking uncontrollably and it only served to fuel Stella's desire to protect this innocent person.

"Little girls like you should run along home." The burly man sneered while he stalked closer to them. Unconsciously, Stella leaned back a bit and gulped.

"P-please, don't let him get me." The woman behind her whimpered quietly. It probably didn't matter to the woman that Stella was just an eleven year old kid because it was most likely better than having no one there.

It was petrifying, but she had to help this woman. She had already dove head first into the fray and she couldn't back out now, even if her gut was screaming at her to turn the other way. So, she steeled herself and lifted her fists up. If her self defence skills from taekwondo were able to help her with a bully, she was certain it could help her now too. She was the best in the class and she practiced hard every day. She could do it.

"I-I won't let you hurt her!" She shouted and adjusted to her defence stance. Her frown deepened when the man laughed loudly at her.

"Then you'll die with her!" He bellowed after his laugh and he reached out to grab Stella.

Somehow, she managed to avoid his attack by using her small size to her advantage. She ducked and moved to the side in one fluid motion. The woman screamed and scrambled to the side as Stella maneuvered closer to the man's side and aimed a strong punch to his gut.

The man howled at the sudden pain and he grabbed the spot she had punched before glaring at her viciously. The young girl aimed a mid-kick to his other side and ignored the desire to cheer in triumph at the solid kick that got the man on one knee.

Things seemed to be going well. She could totally beat him and put him in jail. Batman would probably be really proud of her too.

However, she was ripped out of those distracting thoughts when the angry man got up and charged at her. She tried to avoid him, but he was bigger than her and his broader size knocked her to the ground roughly. Before she could get to her senses, a sharp pain coursed through her as the man picked her up by her hair. She cried out in surprise and reached up to grab the hand that was in her hair.

"Playtime's over. You're dead." He growled in pure rage. His grip tightened and she winced while trying to reach him with her kicks, but to no avail. Terror raced through her veins as the gravity of the situation finally weighed down on her. This wasn't some bully from her brother's class. This was a man three times her size with bulging muscles and strength that she couldn't match up to. This was a man that didn't spew out empty threats. He was livid and strong and he was going to act on these threats.

Who was she kidding? Everything up to this point had been pure luck.

She was going to be killed.

"You should've gone home when you had the chance." He snarled and reeled his other arm for a punch.

She fought as hard as she could, thrashing and screaming and trying to dig her fingernails into the hand that was pulling her hair. She tried everything and anything to stay alive while tears clouded her vision. Not even the woman she was protecting could loosen the man's grip.

Oh god, she was going to die because of her stupid decision and her stupid sense of justice.

However, just when she thought he was going to kill her, the most surprising and amazing thing happened.

The echo of young laughter filled the alley and the man stopped before he threw the punch, also confused as to what that was. Big mistake. Something, or rather someone, dropped down from above and knocked the man onto the ground. Unfortunately, she was released like a sack of potatoes when he fell and her already scraped knees hit the ground too.

The pain was nothing compared to the surprise she felt when she finally saw who had come to her rescue.

"R-robin." She muttered in complete awe.

* * *

Hello! Happy Friday.

Thank you for the follows, favourites, and reviews! I really appreciate them! :)

This chapter was on the shorter side :'D I tend to have some problems with tenses, so I apologize for that. Things are starting off a little slowly, but don't worry, I swear it's going somewhere.

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed!

~Mari


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

She was in complete and utter awe.

Robin, the Boy Wonder, had come to the rescue, followed by Batman. After Robin had knocked the man to the ground and freed her, he had engaged in a bit of a fight. He was flexible and agile, and it had looked as though he had been toying with the man just to rile him up. Then after a few seconds, Batman had swooped down and knocked the man out with a single punch before scolding Robin for playing around.

Stella was in a daze as she watched the heroes, the ones she had seen on the news and had read in books, tie the unconscious man up. It took her awhile before she noticed the hand that had been extended to her.

"I, um, thank you." She managed to stutter out as she gripped the young boy's hand. He pulled her up and gave her a cheeky smile.

"No problem. It's what we do." He said and she offered him a shaky smile. Now that she saw him close up, he didn't look much older than her.

Her knees stung, her body was sore, and she was still trembling from her near death experience, but a wave of relief washed over her. Tears sprung to her eyes as everything rushed back to her and she couldn't help the sniffle that escaped along with a few tears.

Robin looked a tad worried - and a bit panicked? - and he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, it's okay." He spoke softly. "It's over now and you're safe."

"Y-yeah." She sniffles quietly and wiped her eyes. That really was a close call. If Batman and Robin hadn't shown up...she wasn't sure if she wanted to imagine it. She definitely wouldn't have been able to meet her family again if they hadn't come.

Finally, Batman, one of the heroes she had admired for a long time, walked over to where she and Robin were. He was incredibly tall and really intimidating, and she couldn't help shrinking a little bit. Even with the mask on, she could tell he had a hard look in his eyes and practically sensed the disapproval radiating off of him.

"You shouldn't have tried to engage in a fight with that man." Batman scolded her, the frown evident in his deep voice.

"I-I know, I'm sorry. B-but I wanted...I just wanted to help." Stella looked down and fidgeted.

"Almost getting yourself killed is not helping."

Stella's bottom lip jutted out a little. It had been dumb, she knew, but at the time, that sense of danger hadn't fully registered in her brain. She wiped her eyes with a trembling hand and sniffed before whispering, "I-I know t-taekwondo."

"That doesn't mean you know how to fight." He narrowed his eyes at her.

"Leave the baddies to us." Robin piped up with that cheeky smile.

Batman was ... he was right. She shouldn't have jumped into a situation that she hadn't been really prepared for. But … even then, she didn't regret trying to help that woman. No matter how idiotic and naïve it was or how terrified she had been. Robin was the same age as her and he was fighting crime with Batman. She may have been inexperienced, but she still wanted to help.

"You're to go straight home. Do _not _try this again." His words were final, no room for 'but's or any other argument. Nobody tried to argue with the Dark Knight anyway, unless you wanted nightmares for the next ten years. All she did was nod and mumble an agreement before a police officer walked over to escort her home. Before she left though, Batman gave her one last look. "You did well."

Those three simple words warmed her shaky heart and a small smile spread across her lips. She watched Batman and Robin, who gave her a brief wave, grapple off and disappear over the building before she followed the police officer out the alley.

It was only a matter of time before she arrived home and once she did, her parents were hugging her and lecturing her ears off. In the end, her parents decided they weren't letting her, or any of her siblings, out in the evening and for the time being they were to come straight home. She didn't blame them for being overly protective and worried. Gotham was safer than before, but it wasn't all that safe.

Needless to say, her older sister wasn't too happy with this and she blamed Stella for their parents' decision. She did feel bad that her actions ruined it for everyone else. Though her little brother didn't seem too bothered by it, bless his soul.

"Are you okay?" Aiden asked softly as they trudged up the stairs after their mom and dad finished lecturing her. Stella smiled and pulled on her brother's arm to lead him to her room.

"I'm okay now. I was really afraid, but I feel a little better now. Sorry if you had plans after school, I kind of ruined them, huh?"

Aiden shook his head vigorously and smiled kindly. "It's okay. I don't usually go anywhere after school anyway." He was always such a kind and selfless boy. He may be smaller than most kids his age, but he had the biggest heart that they couldn't even compare to. And she loved her little brother so much for that.

"Thanks, Aiden. And guess what? Batman and Robin saved me." She whispered loudly for only him to hear. His eyes widened and he looked at her eagerly to explain her first meeting with superheroes. "They saved me before the bad guy hurt me. And he said that I did well."

Aiden sat with his legs crossed on her bed, leaning forward in childish curiosity as she sat down on her swivel chair. "Batman really said that?"

"Uh-huh. He was really strict at first, but then he said it at the end." It was probably one of the best praises that she had ever received, if you factored out the ones her parents gave her from time to time. Like, if Wonder Woman or Black Canary ever complimented or praised someone, it would've probably made their day too.

"That's so cool! You got to meet them." Just like her, Aiden was an avid superhero fan as well so they always talked about it together. Their oldest sister, however, was not and would always scoff and roll her eyes, telling them they were childish. But Stella knew that Teresa kept a picture of Superman somewhere in her notebook.

"Robin looked like he was my age." She said, leaning her cheek on her palm and humming in thought. Did a lot heroes start off that young? "Do you think I could be one even though I'm young?"

Her little brother nodded and smiled that same sweet smile. "You already are to me." If it had been any other person that had said that, it would've been extremely cheesy, but her brother was so sincere, she knew he meant it.

She reached over and ruffled his hair while smiling widely. "Thanks, kiddo." He would never know just how much that meant to her and how much it fueled her desire to become a stronger person. She wanted to be stronger so she could protect him better, and, of course, protect others.

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Happy Friday!

Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, favourited, and read. It took awhile, but finally Batman and Robin! I know it's a small part, but the ball is rolling. Hopefully, I was able to keep them in character. Stay tuned! :)

~Mari


	4. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

The next day after school, Stella did as her parents asked. After packing up her textbooks, she closed her locker door with a sigh and caught up to her friend so that they could walk home together.

She had been doing a lot of thinking during her classes. It wasn't the first time she had drifted off into her thoughts during school, but today it seemed a little different. She couldn't get her mind off of what had occurred the previous day and what her brother had said to her sort of stuck.

His hero, huh?

It made her heart warm knowing she was someone's hero. It made her wonder, could she be a hero to others? Yes, she had been incredibly terrified. And yes, she realized that her taekwondo abilities weren't exactly enough to really keep her up during a fight. However, the more she thought about it, the more she wanted to _do _something. There was a strong desire to be that person, that _hero_, Aiden saw her as, but she lacked the way to become one. Maybe if she had the proper training, she could overcome being scared during a real fight and be able to enhance her abilities.

The lame part of all this? She was only eleven years old and she definitely didn't have any connections.

"Stella!"

Stella nearly jumped out of her skin at the sudden exclamation and she jerked her head to look at her friend. Her friend had an unimpressed look etched on her face and had stopped walking.

"You were doing that thing again. You know, getting distracted." Christina, one of her best friends at school and taekwondo class, said while rolling her eyes a little and walking again to meet Stella. Christina was used to it, but that didn't meant it wasn't annoying once in a while.

Stella smiled sheepishly and tugged the end of her hair a little. "Sorry. I was just thinking about what Aiden said."

"What'd he say?"

"Well." Stella said and twirled her hair with her finger. "He said I was his hero."

"You are. You help him with bullies all the time." The shorter haired girl said with a smile. They had known each other since Stella had moved to Gotham City all those years ago and knew how she would fiercely protect her little brother. No wonder Aiden thought of his older sister as his superhero.

"Yeah." Stella smiled too, but didn't say anything further. Christina wasn't as into the Justice League as much as her and, she was probably sick of hearing Stella talk about it anyway. Plus, she probably wouldn't approve of these 'wanting to be a real hero' thoughts. It was better to keep quiet about these kinds of matters.

Not five minutes later, they saw a huge crowd gathered in the shopping district that the two girls always passed by on the way home. It wouldn't have been such a big deal if there weren't police, firefighters, and ambulances on site as well. Also, the area in front of the crowd seemed to be sealed off with police tape.

The two girls exchanged confused and curious looks before walking towards the crowd. Sure, Stella's mom had told her to come right home and stuff, but this technically _was _on her way home. A little peek wouldn't hurt, especially since she was already curious.

They didn't get very far though.

"Woah, woah, kids." A police officer cut them off right behind the crowd. He didn't look all too pleased to be stopping two sixth graders. "Your teachers should have told you to avoid this area."

Their home room teacher definitely didn't say anything about this. Just what was going on?

"Our teacher didn't say anything. We didn't know, sir." Christina informed him.

The police officer frowned further and grumbled something about teachers not really listening to the police. He crossed his arms over his chest and didn't budge. "Go home, kids. It ain't safe here."

Spoil sport.

"_Hey, hey. It's the Bat and his sidekick!_"

Batman and Robin were here too?

Forgetting the fact that the police officer had told her to go leave and that her parents expected her to come straight home, she dropped her backpack faster than the blink of an eye and took off into the crowd. She could hear the distant calling of her name and the officer yelling at her to come back, but she couldn't worry about that now. She had to see Batman and Robin.

Using her small stature, she pushed into the crowd of people and maneuvered forward. They 'hey's and 'watch it's didn't faze her one bit and she muttered apologies and 'excuse me's to people.

At last, after pushing passed the last people in the crowd, her eyes darted back and forth in search of the big brooding Bat in a black cape. The moment she saw the flutter of his cape, she ducked under the police tape and ran towards them, ignoring the surprised exclamations from people. She only had one goal right now and she wouldn't give up now.

"Batman! Robin!" She called out while running as fast as her legs would take her.

By the time she had caught up to them, she was huffing and puffing from the fast run. But she had managed to grab the end of Batman's cape to get his attention, if she hadn't already.

"W-wait." She managed to say as she was catching her breath.

"Hey! You're the girl from yesterday." Robin piped up with wide eyes. He hadn't expected her at all.

Batman narrowed his eyes at her and he definitely didn't look pleased. "I thought I told you to stay out of trouble."

"I-I know. I'm sorry." She said once her breathing calmed down a bit, and she let go of his cape. The police that had been chasing her stopped abruptly when Batman raised a hand at them and she watched them turn around to leave. That slight distraction gave her enough time to gather her immediate thoughts. "I-I wanted to ask you a question."

That got Robin's attention and he leaned a bit closer with interest. Batman didn't say anything, but she could practically hear his silent 'go on'.

Her heart was pounding extremely hard as the next words got stuck in her throat. She knew it seemed like a stupid thing to say, but she had to. He was the only connection she had, if he could even be considered one. Gathering up all the courage, she cleared her throat and prepared herself.

"Please help me become a hero."

There was a slight pause.

"_No_."

Her heart sank into the pit of her stomach and disappointment bubbled inside of her. Well...it wasn't like she hadn't expected that answer.

"No way. You can't, Batman." Robin spoke up suddenly and walked around to stand beside her so he could face Batman. Boy Wonder had a frown on his masked face and his arms were spread out to emphasis what he was saying. "I'm already Robin."

Okay, she hadn't been expecting Robin to speak up.

"I know." The hero said shortly, silently telling Robin he had no reason to worry about his spot being taken.

Stella couldn't just stand here. She had to explain herself, try to reason with Batman. "Please, Batman. I'll work hard!"

"No."

"But I- but Robin-"

"Is qualified."

Stella's heart sank even lower and she felt really discouraged. It was obvious Batman was very serious and he didn't show signs of budging. That only made her more disheartened.

"I just...I just want to help people. Like you both do." Her eyes pricked, but she would _not_ cry. Not here. The silence wasn't helping much either. Batman's calculating gaze bore into Stella and Robin's frown expressed how he was feeling all too well.

"Go home." Batman finally said after a long silence. He didn't say much more than that and didn't spare her another glance. With his cape cluttering behind him, he turned around to continue on his way to meet Jim Gordon. Only Robin turned his head to give her one last look, his face very curious now, but he didn't wave like he did the first time they met.

She heaved a sigh and trudged back to where Christina was so that they can go on their way as well.

* * *

That night, Bruce Wayne sat in front of his computers in the Bat Cave, his mask on the desk beside the tray of tea and cookies Alfred had brought him. He stared intensely at the huge computer screen with his chin resting on top of his folded hands. His eyes were particularly trained on the picture and information of a certain girl.

"You can't be serious, Bruce."

Bruce leaned back into his chair and turned his head to see his protégé and ward, Dick Grayson, with his arms crossed over his chest. It was obvious Dick wasn't all that thrilled about Bruce's silence and the way he had the profile of the girl from earlier up on the screen. He was worried about his title as Robin being taken away from him.

"_You_ are Robin." Bruce said firmly, reassuring the young boy that no one would replace him. After Dick's parents being murdered and then him leaving the Haly's circus, being Robin was one of the constants in his life. Bruce knew that better than anyone and he wasn't ever going to take that away from Dick. Bruce knew that well.

That seemed to ease the tension in Dick's shoulders and he let his arms drop to his side before walking over to the computers too. If Bruce didn't plan on recruiting this girl or training her, then why was he looking at her records?

"Stella Cho." Young, blue eyes darted quickly through the information displayed to him. "Hey, she's my age. Well, a few months younger, but same grade. And she has a brown belt in taekwondo."

"Yes." Bruce said simply, leaning back in his chair and propping his elbows on either side of the arm rests. "She has potential."

"So you're serious about taking her in?"

Bruce paused and pressed the side of his forefingers against his lips. His eyes followed yesterday's security recording of when Stella had tried to save that woman. Yes, the young girl had potential, but she lacked proper discipline and skills. Despite that though, she seemed genuine about wanting to help people. How far could that get her? She was naïve, childish, and brash. Even if she was certain about all this, could the girl handle what comes with being a vigilante or hero? Or was this just something she would do until push comes to shove and she would back out?

"No. Not me." Bruce said after some thinking. He couldn't show her, but he knew who could.

* * *

Hello! I decided I wanted to update today instead of Friday, since I have a lot of chapters pre-written already. Thank you kindly to everyone who reviewed, favourited, and followed! You guys are great :)

It's gradually moving along. Stella's only 11 years old, after all, and at that age you're pretty childish, have a lot of big dreams, and don't always make the best/smartest decisions. I'm taking a lot of inspiration from the childhood stories many of my friends tell me :) But, I promise everything will develop!

~Mari


	5. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

Well, that was a huge downer, she thought with a sigh. She had been sighing all afternoon after that encounter with Batman. It definitely dampened her mood and she had been moping the rest of the day. Christina and her parents had questioned her, but she made something up because, of course, they wouldn't understand. Plus, her parents would get upset with her for having her 'head in the clouds'.

She had thought that maybe, just maybe, she was cut out for this hero business. After all, Batman had told her she did well that night. It had given her hope, but maybe Batman didn't mean anything more when he said that to her. Maybe her head really was in the clouds.

Another sigh escaped her as she half-heartedly transitioned into the next stance in her taekwondo form and punched the air weakly.

"Stella. Are you okay?" Her instructor interrupted her in Korean, causing her to look up.

_Not really_. "Yes." She replied back in Korean. The 'yes' was as half-hearted as her practicing and she winced internally at how stupid she must seem. It was hard to get her mind off of what had happened though.

"Are you sure? You haven't been putting any strength into your stances."

"I'm sorry." She bowed politely and offered her instructor a small smile. "I'm just not feeling very good today."

It wasn't a total lie. She felt fine physically, but emotionally? That was debatable.

"If you feel too sick, just take it easy, okay?"

Stella nodded before her instructor jogged over to one of the other students that was calling him over for help. Another sigh escaped her as she got into the next stance of the form and continued on, trying to show some more enthusiasm.

By the end of the class, she felt a little better. She had a practice spar with someone and had won, which cleared her mood again. She thought, so what if Batman didn't take her in? Just because he said no, it doesn't mean she sucked. Stella Cho was pretty good at taekwondo, if she did say so herself. Furthermore, Aiden didn't think of her any differently. And that thought helped her regain some confidence and rose her spirits.

Even her mom seemed to notice that she was in better spirits when she came to pick Stella up from practice.

"Don't forget to clean your room before bed."

Well, she _had_ been in better spirits.

* * *

The next day, there was a smile on her face now that her mood had cleared. Christina had noticed too and her friend seemed relieved about that. Stella wasn't going to lie, it did sting a little still, but she had given herself a pep talk in the morning while looking in her bathroom mirror.

"_There's nothing wrong with you._" She had said to her reflection confidently and she smacked her cheeks together. "_You're still Aiden's hero._" And that's all that mattered. She had only ever dreamed of Batman saying yes, and that's why it was called a dream.

"So, are you going to tell me what yesterday was all about?" Christina asked while munching on her carrot stick.

Stella almost choked on her water and coughed loudly. "Y-yesterday?"

"Yeah, you ran off as soon as someone mentioned Batman."

"I was just really excited to see my hero." Stella tried to sound very nonchalant about it. Her friend wouldn't understand and she definitely didn't want to worry Christina either.

"You didn't seem that excited when you came back. Did something happen?"

Stella shook her head and smiled. "Nah, I was just sad because I only saw a glimpse of him."

Christina smiled too and patted her knee. "Hey, you'll meet him someday."

Stella could only nod her head and stuff her mouth with another half of her sandwich. Truthfully though, she really doubted it and she was sure Christina was only saying that to make her feel better. Trying to let it go and just continuing to daydream was probably the better option. After all, it had just been luck, right? No matter how much she desired to do something more, maybe people were right: dreams are dreams.

Later that night after dinner, while Stella was finishing up the last of her detective novel, her mom popped her head into her bedroom. Her mother was actually pretty tall for a Korean, standing at about five foot eight, and quite intimidating to most because of that. And she looked pretty intimidating right now with that unamused expression on her face and the basket of laundry in her hands.

"Cho Han-byul. I asked you take the trash out." Her mother said firmly in Korean with her eyebrow raised.

"Oh, right…" Stella smiled sheepishly as she slid of her twin-sized bed. She placed the book on top of the night stand and grabbed the trash from out of her bedroom trash can. "I'll get right on that."

"Thank you, dear." Her mom chimed before continuing down the hall to the living room to fold the laundry while watching whichever Korean drama was on tonight. Stella could never keep count of how many her parents watched, but it was definitely a lot, especially since they had something to watch every day of the week for at least a few hours.

There was a pout on her lips as she stuffed her garbage bag into the larger one that was by the backdoor. How come she had to be on trash duty this week? Wasn't it her sister's turn? Darn, eighth graders and their studying to get out of chores. She supposed it wasn't Teresa's fault. Her older sister was on a scholarship at Gotham Academy, which she had worked extremely hard for. And, she had to keep up her grades if she wanted to keep qualifying for that scholarship. So, their parents cut Teresa some slack.

As for Aiden? The kid was just as smart and he was only nine years old. Whereas Teresa studied extremely hard – and, of course, she had natural talent – Aiden had more natural talent in the intelligence category. The principal had even asked their parents if he could skip a few grades or be put in some sort of gifted program; though they didn't do that in the end. There was no doubt in the world that he would be offered a scholarship to Gotham Academy once he started middle school.

And Stella? She went to a public elementary school and she was basically average in terms of studies. Maybe a bit above average, but definitely nothing like Teresa or Aiden. She hadn't been blessed with that sort of gift. The only thing she really had going for her was taekwondo, really. And that her head was in the clouds most of the time. She was basically just the middle child smooshed in the middle of her two intelligent siblings.

With a slight grunt, she began tossing the garbage bags into the trash cart. She had only gotten the first two garbage bags in when she heard a quiet swoosh and felt a sort of presence near her. That feeling one got when someone's eyes were intensely on you.

"Stella Cho."

A scream began erupting in her throat as she swiftly turned her body to the source of the voice. When she noticed who it was, she bite back the scream and it came out more as a strangled yelp.

"Batman?" She whispered and took a step back in surprise. What the- what was he doing here?

But sure enough, the Dark Knight was there in the shadows that her tall backyard fences created. He was standing to the end that was closest to her and the trash, but still out of sight of the back windows of her home. She glanced up at one of the windows to see Aiden looking out to make sure she was okay; something he did when she had to go back despite them living in one of the nicer, gated communities in Gotham.

Giving her brother a wave to show she was perfectly fine, she went back to slowly tossing the remaining bags into the trash cart.

"Meet on the roof outside your room. Alone." That was all he said and she heard another swoosh before he disappeared into the night.

What just happened?

Had she been dreaming? Was she going insane?

Her heart started thumping erratically as she stuffed the last bag into the cart and she walked quickly inside. Adrenaline was pumping through her veins as she tried to walk calmly up to her room to avoid any suspicions her family might have.

"I need to practice taekwondo." She called out loudly as she walked down the hall to her room, not really waiting for any responses. Her family, mostly her brother, knew that meant she needed to concentrate and didn't want to be bothered. It made this meeting a little easier.

Closing her bedroom door, she stumbled around to turn her stereo on for the relaxing music she usually listened to during her practice. It took her awhile with her shaky fingers, but she finally managed to do the task. Taking a deep breath, she walked over to her big window and pulled it up along with the screen before stepping out onto the roof, like she did a million times before. Sitting out on her roof, particularly at night, helped her think and whatnot. Plus, it was a great spot for stargazing.

"Stella."

She nearly jumped out of her skin again at the deep voice from somewhere in the shadows. Looking into her room one last time, she shut the window so no one would hear; not like they could anyway. She stood up straight and watched Batman emerge from the shadows so she could see him.

"B-batman…how'd you know where I live?"

The raise of his eyebrow said everything and she coughed awkwardly for asking such an idiotic question. Of course, he knew where she lived! He was Batman, for crying out loud. He could probably figure out her whole ancestry if he wanted.

"This is about your question."

Hope lit up inside her and a smile immediately bloomed on her lips. "You'll take me in and train me?"

"No." Batman replied without skipping a beat. Her smile faded and her shoulders slumped in defeat. Then, just why was he here?

As if to answer her silent question, another person stepped out from the shadows and stood beside Batman. Stella's eyes widened and she automatically shot up to stand straight to show respect to one of the heroes she admired the most, just as much as Batman.

"But I will." Blue eyes were trained on Stella intensely as they scrutinized the smaller and younger girl.

"Black Canary has agreed to be your mentor."

Stella couldn't believe her ears. All she could do was stare at the tall blonde woman, whom was practically oozing with strength, confidence, beauty, and grace, with wide eyes and fail to produce words. Was she dreaming? Was this really happening? The Black Canary was going to be her mentor?

"I-I-I…" Stella stuttered unintelligently.

"I look forward to training you." Black Canary smiled kindly and extended her hand, causing the intensity of her blue eyes to soften. The kind smile eased the craziness happening inside Stella and the girl grasped Canary's hand, despite her whole arm shaking.

"Y-yes, m-me too." It sounded more like a squeak than actual words, but it was a start. Oh god.

* * *

**_Earlier that day ..._**

The meeting room in the Watchtower was silent as the two heroes stared at the replay of the recording of the security tape with Stella in the alley. It was the second play through and blue eyes concentrated on the young girl in the video.

"She's young."

"Most start young." Bruce replied.

"You mean like Robin?"

Bruce didn't say anything to that and let Black Canary shut the video off.

"She's very brash." Black Canary commented while rubbing her chin, mostly speaking about the way Stella just jumped into the fray. And it was her brashness that had gotten her into trouble. From just looking at her stance, it looked as though the girl had been training in some sort of martial art, possibly taekwondo. But that kind of training alone doesn't help you fight a man much bigger and heavier than you.

"Her attack was lucky." Black Canary said as she pulled up the video again and paused right at the part where Stella attacked the burly man. "It caught the guy by surprise, but that's all it was." Stella wasn't actually trained to take out people that were more than half her size.

Batman raised his eyebrow and silently told Canary to continue.

"Like you said, she has potential."

"But how far will it get her." Batman stated rather than questioned as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Black Canary nodded and mirrored Bruce's action. "Exactly. But … I can show her." She could show Stella how difficult it was to be a hero and how it was not all fun and games, which she was sure the young girl thought it was. It would be a wakeup call, and h_o_pefully, Stella would realize it.

* * *

I have midterms and assignments this week, unfortunately, so this one was kind of rushed. I apologize for that. But hey, things are finally moving along :) And yes, Stella is, indeed, Korean! I'll figure out a way to indicate when she's speaking Korean, like in italics or bold or etc.

Thank you everyone for reading, reviewing, and favouriting! See you once midterms are over, if I didn't die.

~Mari


	6. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

The sound of the birds chirping loudly echoed in the room and the morning rays of the sun filtered through the curtains. The lump in bed with a mop of black hair stirred at the hints of a nice Saturday morning. Well, the chirping birds got annoying after a while and the lump groaned before pulling the covers up over her head.

"No. Why. Please, it's Saturday." She whined at the birds outside her window. Not that they heard her or cared.

"Tomorrow afternoon will be your first training session with me. I have everything written down on this piece of paper."

Training session. A sleepy smile spread across her lips as she turned over to her other side.

Suddenly, with a loud gasp, she shot up into a sitting position with wide eyes. "Training session!" Her hand flew to her mouth, hoping to God no one else in her house heard her. She looked around frantically everywhere until her eyes landed on the piece of paper on her night table, which was on the other side of the bed. One second she sitting up and the next she was crawling to the edge to grab that important piece of paper, but she got tangled. It resulted with her on her belly, trying desperately to reach for the paper. Dang, this undeveloped arms.

"Finally!" She whispered loudly once her fingertips grabbed the edge of the paper and she rolled over, kicking her blankets down furiously to try and untangle them from her legs. It worked...somewhat.

Stella flopped onto her back and held up the piece of paper, the stupid smile still plastered on her face. So her brief meeting with Black Canary and Batman really had happened. It hadn't been some whacky dream.

"Mwah!" She kissed the piece of paper and sighed in content.

The smell of pancakes managed to get her out of her room and she was practically floating down the stairs. When her sister saw her, she made a weirded out face as she stuck another pancake piece into her mouth.

"Your face is freaking me out. Eww." Teresa scrunched her nose up to emphasize her point.

"It's called a smile. Or did you need a dictionary to look that up?"

Teresa rolled her eyes. "Ha, ha. That joke would've been funnier if it wasn't so childish and dumb."

Aiden's eyes nervously darted between his two older sisters as he drank his milk. In his years of experience, it was best if he didn't get in between their fights, arguments, and sass attacks. You sort of learn after the first few 'be quiet's and noogies and shouts.

"Do you two have to fight first thing in the morning?" Their dad asked while placing a fresh plate of pancakes on the table.

"She started it." Teresa huffed and grabbed a new pancake.

"Did not! You said my face looked freaky." The younger girl protested loudly, but that only earned her a sharp look from her mom. Whereas Teresa learned not to get worked up about things such as these, Stella always wanted to prove her side and defend herself. But it never worked out well because she would end up getting in trouble the most for being loud and persistent and saying too much.

Stella frowned unhappily and stabbed the pancake her dad pushed onto her plate. Aiden offered her a sympathetic smile before stuffing his face with another pancake.

It wasn't fair. It never was.

But at least she had the training with Black Canary to look forward to.

* * *

Okay ... so this was definitely not what she had in mind.

Stella tried lifting her arm up, but it proved much more difficult than she thought. With the added weights on her wrists and upper arm, she found her movements to be more awkward than anything. Not just those though, Black Canary had strapped ankle and thigh weights to her too.

"Is this really necessary?" Stella questioned as she lifted one of her legs and shook it around. They weren't that heavy, just awkward because of the added weight.

"Very necessary." Black Canary replied while handing her weighted gloves and helped the girl into a weighted vest. Basically everything was weighted except her workout shoes.

"You have to build up some muscle and stamina before we can do anything else." Canary continued as she strapped the vest. "This'll help you gain a bit of speed too."

"So, we aren't going out and fighting crime?"

"Not for a while. You've got to get the fundamentals down before you go out there." Canary responded and she watched Stella deflate a little. It was obvious how much the young girl wanted to get out there and fight crime and do good deeds, but she needed to know there was more to that. That was what Dinah wanted to teach her.

"Stella, I know this wasn't what you were expecting. But you can't go out there unprepared."

"But I know taekwondo." Stella murmured while looking down.

"Yes, but that isn't enough. Knowing some taekwondo won't keep you alive for long. There's more to it than just knowing a form of martial art. Luck won't always be on your side." Dinah was referring to Stella's encounter in the alley. The blonde woman placed a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder and squeezed gently. "I understand how you feel, but I promise this training will pay off."

Stella nodded and looked up at her mentor. "I guess so."

Dinah smiled and walked over to the punching bag. She gave it a few pats before facing Stella. "Since we've done stretches, we'll work with this now."

And so training began. Her movements weren't as swift as before and her limbs got tired a lot quicker. The added weight threw her off balance from time to time, and she could feel the strain after a few sets of kicks and punches. By the half hour mark, sweat was pouring down her face and body, and she felt like a ragdoll at the moment.

"Let's take a break." The moment Canary said that, Stella flopped down on the mats like a star. Not moving felt so nice right now. Dinah chuckled and sat by Stella's head, leaning back on her hands. "Not so easy with the weights, right?"

"Not at all." Stella said once she caught her breath.

"I know. It's how I trained too. My mother was the first Black Canary and she, along with other heroes, trained me." Canary paused and shifted slightly to get comfortable. "It's not easy and it doesn't get any easier. Being a hero is tough and you have to bear all the consequences, hardships, and pressures."

"It's different once you actually get out there and experience the real thing. I need you to know that this isn't fun and games, Stella."

The young girl listened to her mentor carefully, taking in everything she said. This wasn't fun and games...she knew that much better now. Unlike Superman, Wonder Woman, and the Flash, Stella didn't have any special super powers. She knew fully well that she had to rely on her human strength and agility to make up for her lack of powers, just like Batman and Black Canary - minus her Canary Cry, of course. The heroes without powers must've had to train extremely hard to get to where they were now. Canary was right, if she got tired just from this training, there was no way she could survive very long out in the crime-fighting world. She could barely get through half an hour of training without feeling like her body was made of jello. But she did manage to learn that much from just a short time.

"I understand." Stella said sitting up and pulling her knees up to her chest.

She remembered the scene that happened last week so vividly. The man beating the woman, the woman screaming and rubbing her hands and begging for his forgiveness, and the man's angry cursing and blaming as he beat her; the memory was etched into her brain. Anger had filled her as adrenaline had begun to pump through her veins. Before she knew it, her body had moved on pure instinct. In her world, men didn't beat kids or women, especially not their girlfriends or wives.

"You got angry and dove head first into it. Your emotions won over your mind." Canary supplied and Stella nodded. That was one way of putting it.

"And before I knew it, I was already in too deep. It freaked me out." She couldn't help the slight shudder that ran down her spine at the memory. The first few nights, she had been plagued with nightmares of that experience, but they gradually stopped as the weeks passed.

"What about now?"

She had to pause to think about it. "I'm still freaked out at how close I was to dying, but..." She looked down to look at her clenching and unclenching hands. "I don't regret it much. I'm not sure how to explain it, but there was a sort of..."

"Rush?" Canary smiled. "I understand. That's how I felt too my first time. Afraid and worried, yet there was that rush."

Not many people felt that sort of thing, aside from those that were already part of the crime fighting life. Some people were born with powers, some were born with the natural potential, and sometimes both. It's just like when people were born with the potential to become a ballerina, or scientist, or doctor, and so on. Of course, this didn't always, one-hundred percent apply to all the heroes. But Black Canary could sense something in this young girl. Now it was a matter of how she develops.

"Come on. Another half hour of this and some more stretches. Then I'll let you go for today." Canary patted the girl's knee and stood up in one fluid motion. The quiet groan Stella emitted made her smirk.

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad, for the both of them.

* * *

"Ughhh." Stella groaned and tossed her small workout bag onto her bedroom floor. She stumbled towards her bed and fell on top of it with a loud 'oof'. Ahhh, that felt so much better. The comfortable mattress and blankets cushioned her aching muscles.

That last half hour of training with Black Canary certainly hadn't felt like it had been half an hour. Her arms and legs felt like lead, and her muscles felt like they were pulsing, but that could just be her tired mind playing tricks. She hadn't expected having weighted items on her to make her tired faster, especially when they were all in the lightest weight. Something about her slowly adding weight to gradually gain muscle.

"No one make me move." She mumbled to herself and buried her face into her pillow. Thank god, Canary said there wouldn't be any training tomorrow. Since she was still getting used to this sort of exercise, Canary wanted to take days off in between, which Stella reluctantly agreed to. She wanted to get everything done fast; she wasn't known to be a very patient person. But at this very moment, she was glad she agreed to it.

As she drifted in and out of slumber, she wondered what was in store for her.

* * *

**I survived midterms? Just barely though. At this point, I've pretty much mastered the art of procrastination (said every college student ever). But hey, I still finished my essay with a few hours to spare.**

**Thank you for waiting for the next chapter, and thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, favourited, and followed! I hope you all had a great few weeks. So, Stella finally started her training with Dinah, and she's still pretty hot headed and whiny about it, since it wasn't what she had imagined. Trust me, as the person who created her, sometimes I want to shake her shoulders, but all in due time! It all comes together :)**

**I'm excited to get to Chapter 8. It's a bit away, but I can tell you that there _will_ be a special appearance. You all know him and (hopefully) love him! Have a good weekend :)**

**~Mari**

**PS - if you like Big Hero 6 as much as I do, I wrote something for it recently. It's an AU where Tadashi lives; the very common AU idea. But this was my take on it and if you decide to read it, I hope you enjoy :)**


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